Nontuthuzelo Jack sentence should serve as a warning to others: Trollip

By Afikile Lugunya - Nov 16, 2018

The Crimen Injuria case that pitted a former Democratic Alliance (DA) activist, Nontuthuzelo Jack, vs former DA Eastern Cape leader, Athol Trollip, finally came to an end on Thursday when she was sentenced to five years imprisonment.

Jack alleged that Trollip paid her a bribe so that she could dig up dirt on his then political rival, Mveliswa Mveya, who was the DA's Eastern Cape chairperson.

The DA in the Eastern Cape said that it welcomed the judgement handed down in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate's Court "exposing the nefarious political conspiracy" against Trollip during the 2016 local government elections.

Sentencing

For Crimen Injuria, Jack was sentenced to three years imprisonment and for lying under oath she was sentenced to two years.

Luckily for her, the sentences were commuted to five years of house arrest and community service.

The community service will include cleaning the Motherwell Police Station and any other state institution as determined by the community service supervisor.

Trollip said that Jack suffered the consequences of her smear campaign against him and he hopes that the sentence will be a lesson to other politicians as well.

"The court recognized the harm caused and the impact her accusations had on me personally but equally to my public reputation.

"I am satisfied that the court has attached a consequence to those who seek to smear or defame anyone and in particular, as in my case, political leadership figures," Trollip said.

He added that he is very much satisfied that Jack will suffer the consequences of her lies.

However, Trollpi said; "I am unsatisfied that her collaborators or political puppet masters have not been exposed and held to account."

A warning to others

"This sentence will however serve as a warning to future or potential political pawns. It will inevitably be them and not the master minds that are held to account - they will have to bear the brunt of the courts decisions," Trollip described.

He alleged that the case and the case against former ANC councillor, Lawrence Troon, and new ANC recruit, Knight Mali, were all a deliberate smear campaigns aimed at damaging his reputation.

"This was aimed at damaging my reputation and political prospects while I was an NMB Mayoral Candidate during the 2016 local government elections."

"This case should also serve as a salutary caution to those who want to engage in this kind of gutter politics - they will be held to account for their actions.

"I am pleased that my public reputation, built over 25 years, remains intact and that I have been vindicated in all three of these despicable defamation cases.

"I appreciate the support from my family, my political party, my colleagues, the public and the criminal justice system," Trollip said.

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